Old video shows flooding in Lebanon, not current event in West Bank | Fact check

Kate S. Petersen, USA TODAY
·2 min read
1

The claim: Video shows November 2023 flooding in West Bank

A Nov. 20 Facebook video (direct link, archive link) shows muddy torrents of water moving rapidly through a flooded residential area.

"Massive flood due to strong rainfall in the Jericho of West Bank in Palestine. 11-20-2023," reads the video's caption.

More from the USA TODAY Fact-Check Team:

Our rating: False

This footage isn't recent or from the West Bank. The video was captured in Lebanon and posted online as early as 2018.

Video from Lebanon, not West Bank

The footage in the post was included in a compilation shared on Facebook in 2018 by Saida Online, a Lebanese media outlet. A Facebook translation of the compilation's caption reads: "Floods sweep away cars and enter homes in Ras Baalbek and Al-Qaa - Lebanon."

The video was also uploaded to YouTube in 2018 with a caption that reads, "River overflow floods Baalbek, Lebanon - June 13, 2018."

An aerial view of the neighborhood in the video can be seen in a Google Maps image of Ras Baalbek Al Sahl, Lebanon.

There are no credible reports of the West Bank flooding in November as of Nov. 29.

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USA TODAY reached out to the Facebook user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

Reuters also debunked the video.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Video shows flood in Lebanon, not Jericho | Fact check